To make a long story short, my new F3 is damaged, so I asked the LBS if they would give me a full refund if I buy the prophet 5 (btw, it's marked down to 1099). So, I have a couple of questions:

1. My bike has to fit in my Mustang, so both wheels need to come of easily. Does the lefty allow for this?

2. What are the pros & cons of the lefty?

3. Can this shock be adjusted with a pump like the the head shock?

4. What are everyone's overall opinions on this bike?

Thanks for the input!!

Wow! That's an awesome deal!
I paid $1,600.- for mine in in June which was pretty expensive considering I just wanted the frame/fork $ wheels.
I had a 96 Mustang and it was a pain in the @ss to constantly remove the wheels, so I bought a bike carrier and had no issues with it.
I still use it on my new car a Chevy HHR and it's way more convenient this way.
When your bike is dirty or something you don't have to worry about messing your interior up and you can just leave your bike on the carrier and hose it off before you take it inside the house.
If you buy a name brand carrier (like Yakima, Thule etc.) you don't have to worry about your paint job either. The pads that touch the car a really soft and don't scratch the surface. (I just wipe off those areas with a damp rag before mounting it).
I have a Yakima rack and it doesn't wobble or move at all. Even with 2 Prophet bikes attached.
The procedure of removing the lefty wheel is pretty simple, yet I still don't like the idea of constantly removing the axle bolt and to loosen the brake caliber mounting bolts to often. They might get messed up over time....
The Prophet 5 is a sweet bike but I would definitely talk to the bikeshop to see if they can swap the wheels for you. I got my crosslands this way at no extra charge when I bought the bike and they are a big improvement over the stock wheels. For now they work fine until I have enough money saved to get me a set of black/white Spinergy wheels
On the Prophet 5 you can't adjust the Lefty with air. It's the Lefty FFD which is coil sprung and oil dampened.
Big advantage over a regular fork is the better handling, stiffness and weight. Once you had a lefty any other Fork you try feels mushy and flexy.
Bottom line: The Prophet 5 is a nice bike and can be built to be a very light one too. If you buy it from a shop try to work something out as far as a wheel swap goes. You can always upgrade components once something breaks.
In what color are you getting the bike in? Blue/black or black n' white?

Wow! That's an awesome deal!
I paid $1,600.- for mine in in June which was pretty expensive considering I just wanted the frame/fork $ wheels.
I had a 96 Mustang and it was a pain in the @ss to constantly remove the wheels, so I bought a bike carrier and had no issues with it.
I still use it on my new car a Chevy HHR and it's way more convenient this way.
When your bike is dirty or something you don't have to worry about messing your interior up and you can just leave your bike on the carrier and hose it off before you take it inside the house.
If you buy a name brand carrier (like Yakima, Thule etc.) you don't have to worry about your paint job either. The pads that touch the car a really soft and don't scratch the surface. (I just wipe off those areas with a damp rag before mounting it).
I have a Yakima rack and it doesn't wobble or move at all. Even with 2 Prophet bikes attached.
The procedure of removing the lefty wheel is pretty simple, yet I still don't like the idea of constantly removing the axle bolt and to loosen the brake caliber mounting bolts to often. They might get messed up over time....
The Prophet 5 is a sweet bike but I would definitely talk to the bikeshop to see if they can swap the wheels for you. I got my crosslands this way at no extra charge when I bought the bike and they are a big improvement over the stock wheels. For now they work fine until I have enough money saved to get me a set of black/white Spinergy wheels
On the Prophet 5 you can't adjust the Lefty with air. It's the Lefty FFD which is coil sprung and oil dampened.
Big advantage over a regular fork is the better handling, stiffness and weight. Once you had a lefty any other Fork you try feels mushy and flexy.
Bottom line: The Prophet 5 is a nice bike and can be built to be a very light one too. If you buy it from a shop try to work something out as far as a wheel swap goes. You can always upgrade components once something breaks.
In what color are you getting the bike in? Blue/black or black n' white?

Thanks for all the insight. That helps a lot. I'm looking at the black/white model....its all they have left. Since this is non-adjustable w/ air, what do I have to do to adjust it (i'm sure this will have to be done since I only weigh 155). Is the FFD a good shock? My F3 has the Super Fatty Ultra DLR 80 air shock, and I love it. Is the FFD going to give me the same type of feel? Also, are there any down sides to frequently removing the front wheel (besides the hassle and possible stripping the threads as you mentioned)? Just wondering if Cannondale advises against this. I like your bike rack idea, but I just cant come to grips with the fact that I would have to put something on my paint job. I guess i'm just a weenie when it comes to my car.

Thanks for all the insight. That helps a lot. I'm looking at the black/white model....its all they have left. Since this is non-adjustable w/ air, what do I have to do to adjust it (i'm sure this will have to be done since I only weigh 155). Is the FFD a good shock? My F3 has the Super Fatty Ultra DLR 80 air shock, and I love it. Is the FFD going to give me the same type of feel? Also, are there any down sides to frequently removing the front wheel (besides the hassle and possible stripping the threads as you mentioned)? Just wondering if Cannondale advises against this. I like your bike rack idea, but I just cant come to grips with the fact that I would have to put something on my paint job. I guess i'm just a weenie when it comes to my car.

Thanks again for your help!

I felt the same way about my paint job and I'm more than picky when it comes to check for nicks/scratches every time I wash the car. Believe me, nothing will happen to your paint.
I can shoot a pic of my rack attached to my current car if you like so you can see for yourself... as long as everything is adjusted right and the rack doesn't move you shouldn't be worried about your car's paint. My LeBra front end cover on my 'stang messed up the paint more than the bike carrier would ever do. Scratches or scuffs could only occur when the rack is not tight enough and rubs against the paint.
Like I said: just wipe of the dust with a wet rag were the pads will actually rest against the trunk lid and you'll be alright....
Well, the Lefty Max has more travel than your fatty and therefore will feel much smoother when you go over rougher terrain. The FFD can only be adjusted to your bodyweight (preload of the spring) and you can also adjust the rebound by turning the red dial on top (rebound is the speed the fork moves to it's original position after a compression) You can also change the spring inside the fork to a stiffer or softer one if you like. You don't have a lock out feature on the lefty max and you'll have more pedal induced bobbing, but you can't really compare the 2 Forks because they each belong in a different category. Since you're about to buy your rig at a shop let them take care of all the major adjustments though. A good bike shop will do everything needed (Including changing stems and/or wheels ) until it feels right for you and you can begin fine tuning it on the trail.
I was afraid to strip something on my fork over time that's the main reason behind me getting a rack. Just imagine yourself getting to the trail, stripping a thread when you attach the wheel and next thing you know is to head back home
As far as other problems... maybe you can start another thread to see how many riders actually had problems after frequently removing the front wheel.
Black/white is nice! That's the same bike I bought! All you need is a red/blue flasher on the handlebar and people will think you're a cop....

P5 vs F3

Hi F3C..

I have a 05 F600 with the headshok and a 07 P5 with the Lefty Max FFD

The Ultra DLR and the Lefty Max feel quite different , they both track very nicely , but if you hop, jump or huck on anything more then 2 feet , the Lefty takes the cake , but if you want to go fast and doesn't jump , the DLR is much lighter and steel quicker.

The Lefty Max doesn't have an air chamber , it is oil and coil only rebound and no locking vs, the DLR is oil/Air with locking thus makes it lighter and more suited for XC.

As to which one is a better bike , they are both great bike , but at $ 1099 for an 07 P5l is a killer deal , you probably can ride it for two years and re-sell it for what you pay , so if I were you , I will get it before someone else see it first

All of this is great info, and it's really helping me make my decision... But, the more I know about the Lefty, the more I think it's not the fork for me. If I dont want the Lefty, does that mean I shouldnt buy this bike? Is it a major chore and expense to switch to something like a Marzocchi fork (would this even work?)?

All of this is great info, and it's really helping me make my decision... But, the more I know about the Lefty, the more I think it's not the fork for me. If I dont want the Lefty, does that mean I shouldnt buy this bike? Is it a major chore and expense to switch to something like a Marzocchi fork (would this even work?)?

Thanks to everyone helping with this. I really appreciate it.

The prophet as a base bike is a really good bike... Just because you don't want the lefty doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it.

Yes, you can change the fork and put on a "normal" fork... It's just that you need a special headset which your LBS should be able to supply you with.

If I were you, and I didn't want the lefty, I would try and get the LBS to give me a price difference on a new fork in exchange for them taking the lefty for themselves... And get them to install the new fork / headset, etc...

Either that or just buy the bike and a new fork / headset, and get the LBS to remove the lefty, install the new fork.. and then sell the lefty off on Ebay...

Since Cannondale ditched the Lefty Max, you might get more money for it...

The prophet as a base bike is a really good bike... Just because you don't want the lefty doesn't mean you shouldn't buy it.

Yes, you can change the fork and put on a "normal" fork... It's just that you need a special headset which your LBS should be able to supply you with.

If I were you, and I didn't want the lefty, I would try and get the LBS to give me a price difference on a new fork in exchange for them taking the lefty for themselves... And get them to install the new fork / headset, etc...

Either that or just buy the bike and a new fork / headset, and get the LBS to remove the lefty, install the new fork.. and then sell the lefty off on Ebay...

Since Cannondale ditched the Lefty Max, you might get more money for it...

lefty not being the right fork? what the..? it's the perfect fork for you! hehe. if the ffd doesn't fit your style upgrade the internals to a tpc+. as far as the often removal of the wheel goesm doesn't matter much. if you do it like you're supposed to it should work fine. i do it all the time. you might need a bottle of loctite for the calipher though, so you can reapply some every now and again.

i have a lefty spv evolve in alu and my brother has the carbon version, and i think it is a great fork. sure, you will get a lot of stupid remarks about missing a leg and so on, but it is simply put one of the best 140mm forks ever made. stiff as hell and now there's even a decent lineup of wheels from shimano, mavic and so on to be had, so i see no reason what so ever of choosing another fork over it if you have one. and the lefty really makes the prophet look nice too.

just because it is a coil doesn't mean that it isn't great or adjustable. more often than not coil sprung forks are the cream of the crop and what the air forks try to emulate.

the moral of the post; get the prophet with a lefty and you'll never regret it. with a proper setup and good wheels the prophet will take you to a whole new level of bike appreciation. it is simply put a very, very fun bike, epecially downhill, and the lefty looks good, functions well and is not so common. at least try it eh? if not rebuild it to a tpc and perhaps a deal could be struck. i've never tried a tpc and would like to, besides, my lefty needs a servicing pretty badly ;-)